The Death Death is a flower that blooms only once.
Yet as it blooms, it doesn't bloom like anything else.
It blooms when it wants, it doesn't bloom in time.
It comes, a huge moth, decorating the swaying stalk.
You let me be a stalk, so strong it makes him happy. Celan, Paul. "The Death." American Poetry Review Sept.-Oct. 2008: 27. Library Reference Center. Web. 24 Mar. 2010. <http://search.ebscohost.com/
login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=33905664&site=lrc-live>. Extended Response: Vardaman 84
"My mother is a fish."
...Goodness I am so confused, I believe that my mother is a fish! I just don't understand though, she used to be a person. Something must have happened to her while she was getting sick that turned her into a fish. She just has to be a fish, I know it! I caught that big fish the other day, and it was alive when I caught it, then I killed it and it was dead. Mother was alive for so long, and all of a sudden she was dead...which means that she is somehow a fish...I wonder if I am a fish too? I just don't know anymore, I thought that we were human but there must be some part of us that is fish, I must be part fish too since she was my mother! Since my fish died, and it stayed dead, and now mother is dead, I guess she will stay dead. She is going to be dead forever! I am really going to miss her, I sure did enjoy being with her. I'm really going to miss her, I'm really going to miss her. I wonder if anyone else knows she is a fish, maybe I should let them know that we must all be part fish except Pa of course cause he wasn't made from her, but I guess I should tell Jewel, Darl, Dewey Dell, and Cash. I'm sure they would all like to know that they are all part fish too, I would want to know if I were one of them. Guess I'll go tell them!
Visual Depiction: Dewey Dell 26-27 The words above describe Dewey Dell's section on pages 26 and 27. She is remembering when she and Lafe had sex. She talks about her sack and his sack, and about how they are walking down the rows and picking and filling her sack. She is talking to herself in her mind, and might have said it out loud, but she says that if she makes it down the row and her sack is full, then she will go into the "secret shade" with Lafe, but if her sack is not full yet, she will go up the row again. Lafe begins helping her fill her sack too, she makes it up the row and he sack is full. They head to the "secret shade." After they leave the "secret shade," Dewey Dell see's Darl and she says that she knows that he knows what they did, and she knows that he knows even without words, she can just tell. Extended Response: Dewey Dell 58
Stupid pregnancy and Lafe! It's ruining my life! I just wish I didn't have to worry about it. I really wish Peabody would help me. I just need him to perform an abortion on me! Pa can't find out about my pregnancy! Thank goodness mother died so we can go to town and I can get Peabody to do an abortion so that Pa won't find out. Peabody could help me so much! It is very important that I get this abortion, he don't even know how important this is to me! I can't believe I was so dumb as to let Lafe get me pregnant, it just creates so many problems, and if Pa finds out, he will be so mad! He can't find out! But, the problem is that I'm not sure that I am able to cry anymore, I just don't think I can, am I worrying? I really don't know whether I am worrying about this or not, I really need someones help, but not Anse! NOO! He can't find out, no matter what!
Dear Diary,
The strangest thing happened to me last night! There was a huge storm and a knock at the door woke me up in the middle of the night. It was Vardaman! He was all wet and muddy. He then told me about the fish that he had caught. I decided to go out and get the horses ready for our journey to the Bundrens. Vardaman was still telling Cora about his fish when I got back inside. Then, we left for the Bundrens. Once we got to the Bundrens I helped Cash finish Addie's coffin, and we placed her in it later that day. We nailed the coffin shut, Vardaman really had a problem with us nailing it shut, he didn't like the idea of it at all! He was so attached to his mother, he just needs to understand that she is gone now and keeping that coffin open won't help anything, it's not going to bring her back to life, she's dead. This morning we woke up to find that Vardaman couldn't take it, he couldn't handle his mother being nailed in her coffin, so he drilled two holes into the coffin, but ended up drilling through Addie's face!
Visual Depiction: Vardaman 65-67 The words above describe Varnamans section Varnaman is very upset by the thought that Addie will be nailed shut in the coffin. He also is worried about her being in the dark. He begins to talk about how be got shut up in a crib with a rat and he couldn't breathe because the rat was breathing up all of the air and there was none for him. The whole time he is asking Cash if he is going to nail it up.
Addie's Reaction to Whitfield 177-179 Wow, I never knew how much Whitfield actually cared about me. It is crazy to think about all of the guilt he feels now. I have been saved by my death, but he has lived with this guilt ever since. I had my beautiful Jewel, and he was left with nothing but guilt and pain. He has only told the devil, and no one else. He even crossed the bridge that was flooded, so that he could tell "my husband" who never knew anything, about what we did. Whitfield and I shared true love, I never felt this way for Anse. Which is crazy, I loved being with Whitfield, but have never felt this way towards Anse. I did everything for Anse as a result of what I had done with Whitfield. Dewey Dell was only born to negate Jewels being born. I had rejected Darl from the beginning. Vardaman was only to make up for Cash. I hated all of my kids except my wonderful Jewel. I loved whipping them. I would just sit and hate all of my kids, how I loved that. Anse just tricked me into having Darl. Anse was always dead to me, I would sit and imagine his deaths, over and over again in my head. I just wanted to be with Whitfield and Jewel, nothing else. Nothing for Anse was done out of love. I wish that Whitfield could have came and taken Jewel and I away, we could have all been together forever, just the three of us. I didn't even care if anyone ever found out about Jewel and Whitfield. I didn't care at all, he made me so happy. I would have never had to worry about my stupid husband Anse who caused me so much pain and stress, and my awful children, other than Jewel. Just the three of us, stupid Whitfield. He came to take his last look at me, now I am dead, and Whitfield and I are apart forever.
Fire To the fire they went running
Not knowing that the fire was coming The horses were stuck
And seemed much out of luck
But they came to the rescue
Knowing exactly their cueThe cow is last
And got out fast
Away from the barn they went running
Thank goodness the boys were cunning
By: William Faulkner
Poem: Darl 48-49
The Death
Death is a flower that blooms only once.
Yet as it blooms, it doesn't bloom like anything else.
It blooms when it wants, it doesn't bloom in time.
It comes, a huge moth, decorating the swaying stalk.
You let me be a stalk, so strong it makes him happy.
Celan, Paul. "The Death." American Poetry Review Sept.-Oct. 2008: 27. Library
Reference Center. Web. 24 Mar. 2010. <http://search.ebscohost.com/
login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=33905664&site=lrc-live>.
Extended Response: Vardaman 84
"My mother is a fish."
...Goodness I am so confused, I believe that my mother is a fish! I just don't understand though, she used to be a person. Something must have happened to her while she was getting sick that turned her into a fish. She just has to be a fish, I know it! I caught that big fish the other day, and it was alive when I caught it, then I killed it and it was dead. Mother was alive for so long, and all of a sudden she was dead...which means that she is somehow a fish...I wonder if I am a fish too? I just don't know anymore, I thought that we were human but there must be some part of us that is fish, I must be part fish too since she was my mother! Since my fish died, and it stayed dead, and now mother is dead, I guess she will stay dead. She is going to be dead forever! I am really going to miss her, I sure did enjoy being with her. I'm really going to miss her, I'm really going to miss her. I wonder if anyone else knows she is a fish, maybe I should let them know that we must all be part fish except Pa of course cause he wasn't made from her, but I guess I should tell Jewel, Darl, Dewey Dell, and Cash. I'm sure they would all like to know that they are all part fish too, I would want to know if I were one of them. Guess I'll go tell them!
Visual Depiction: Dewey Dell 26-27
The words above describe Dewey Dell's section on pages 26 and 27. She is remembering when she and Lafe had sex. She talks about her sack and his sack, and about how they are walking down the rows and picking and filling her sack. She is talking to herself in her mind, and might have said it out loud, but she says that if she makes it down the row and her sack is full, then she will go into the "secret shade" with Lafe, but if her sack is not full yet, she will go up the row again. Lafe begins helping her fill her sack too, she makes it up the row and he sack is full. They head to the "secret shade." After they leave the "secret shade," Dewey Dell see's Darl and she says that she knows that he knows what they did, and she knows that he knows even without words, she can just tell.
Extended Response: Dewey Dell 58
Stupid pregnancy and Lafe! It's ruining my life! I just wish I didn't have to worry about it. I really wish Peabody would help me. I just need him to perform an abortion on me! Pa can't find out about my pregnancy! Thank goodness mother died so we can go to town and I can get Peabody to do an abortion so that Pa won't find out. Peabody could help me so much! It is very important that I get this abortion, he don't even know how important this is to me! I can't believe I was so dumb as to let Lafe get me pregnant, it just creates so many problems, and if Pa finds out, he will be so mad! He can't find out! But, the problem is that I'm not sure that I am able to cry anymore, I just don't think I can, am I worrying? I really don't know whether I am worrying about this or not, I really need someones help, but not Anse! NOO! He can't find out, no matter what!
Diary Entry Response: Tull 68-74
Dear Diary,
The strangest thing happened to me last night! There was a huge storm and a knock at the door woke me up in the middle of the night. It was Vardaman! He was all wet and muddy. He then told me about the fish that he had caught. I decided to go out and get the horses ready for our journey to the Bundrens. Vardaman was still telling Cora about his fish when I got back inside. Then, we left for the Bundrens. Once we got to the Bundrens I helped Cash finish Addie's coffin, and we placed her in it later that day. We nailed the coffin shut, Vardaman really had a problem with us nailing it shut, he didn't like the idea of it at all! He was so attached to his mother, he just needs to understand that she is gone now and keeping that coffin open won't help anything, it's not going to bring her back to life, she's dead. This morning we woke up to find that Vardaman couldn't take it, he couldn't handle his mother being nailed in her coffin, so he drilled two holes into the coffin, but ended up drilling through Addie's face!
Visual Depiction: Vardaman 65-67
The words above describe Varnamans section Varnaman is very upset by the thought that Addie will be nailed shut in the coffin. He also is worried about her being in the dark. He begins to talk about how be got shut up in a crib with a rat and he couldn't breathe because the rat was breathing up all of the air and there was none for him. The whole time he is asking Cash if he is going to nail it up.
Addie's Reaction to Whitfield 177-179
Wow, I never knew how much Whitfield actually cared about me. It is crazy to think about all of the guilt he feels now. I have been saved by my death, but he has lived with this guilt ever since. I had my beautiful Jewel, and he was left with nothing but guilt and pain. He has only told the devil, and no one else. He even crossed the bridge that was flooded, so that he could tell "my husband" who never knew anything, about what we did. Whitfield and I shared true love, I never felt this way for Anse. Which is crazy, I loved being with Whitfield, but have never felt this way towards Anse. I did everything for Anse as a result of what I had done with Whitfield. Dewey Dell was only born to negate Jewels being born. I had rejected Darl from the beginning. Vardaman was only to make up for Cash. I hated all of my kids except my wonderful Jewel. I loved whipping them. I would just sit and hate all of my kids, how I loved that. Anse just tricked me into having Darl. Anse was always dead to me, I would sit and imagine his deaths, over and over again in my head. I just wanted to be with Whitfield and Jewel, nothing else. Nothing for Anse was done out of love. I wish that Whitfield could have came and taken Jewel and I away, we could have all been together forever, just the three of us. I didn't even care if anyone ever found out about Jewel and Whitfield. I didn't care at all, he made me so happy. I would have never had to worry about my stupid husband Anse who caused me so much pain and stress, and my awful children, other than Jewel. Just the three of us, stupid Whitfield. He came to take his last look at me, now I am dead, and Whitfield and I are apart forever.
William Faulkner's Blabberize: Addie's Section 169-77
http://apimages.ap.org
Poem: Darl 218-222
Fire
To the fire they went running
Not knowing that the fire was coming
The horses were stuck
And seemed much out of luck
But they came to the rescue
Knowing exactly their cueThe cow is last
And got out fast
Away from the barn they went running
Thank goodness the boys were cunning
Newspaper: Moseley 198-205